Joaquim
Vilà

Professor of Strategic Management

• Ph.D. in Strategic Management, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
• Master’s in Organization and Strategy, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
• Industrial Engineer, Universitat Politècnica de Barcelona
• Business Administration, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
• Certified Design Thinking, IDEO and Experience Point
• IAP-Harvard Business School on Design Thinking

Joaquim Vilà is a Professor of Strategic Management, Innovation and Design Thinking, as well as the Academic Director of IESE’s Executive Education Focused Programs on Innovation Implementation and Design Thinking.

He has worked as a research fellow at the Reginald H. Jones Center for Management Policy, Strategy and Organization of the Wharton School and as a research associate in the Management and Technology Program, also at Wharton.

He serves as an instructor in executive education programs and a consultant on design thinking and innovation capabilities, implementing management innovation, and drivers of sustainable innovative culture, as well as experiential learning in design thinking for creative problem solving and developing innovation capabilities in top leaders and strategic thinking capabilities in middle managers. He provides consulting to more than 50 national and international corporations, including Roche Diagnostics, Amgen, Telefónica, Komatsu, Nutrexpa, Uniland, APLI, Henkel, Nestlé, Premo and Sener. He also serves as innovation director in the board of several Spanish companies.

Prof. Vilà has published in the areas of innovation and design thinking, strategy making, organizational renewal and top-management innovation systems. His current research focuses on: how to improve innovation competencies through strategic thinking, design innovation, and the role of top-management leadership in reinventing and transforming a business, as well as how to nurture a sustainable culture of innovation.

Areas of interest

* Creative problem solving through design thinking
* Systematic innovation: The role of managers in the front-end innovation process
* Top management Innovation leadership competences
* Strategic thinking for middle managers
* Drivers of a sustainable innovative culture

 

Publications

Journal Articles (refereed)

BADRINAS, J., VILÀ, J. (2015). An Innovation Management System to Create Growth in Mature Industrial Technology Firms. International Journal of Innovation Science, 7 (4), 263 - 279. doi:10.1260/1757-2223.7.4.263.
VILÀ, J., CANALES, J. I. (2008). Can Strategic Planning Make Strategy More Relevant and Build Commitment over Time?. The Case of RACC. Long Range Planning, 41 (3), 273 - 290. doi:10.1016/j.lrp.2008.02.009.
CANALES, J. I., VILÀ, J. (2005). Sequence of thinking and acting in strategy-making. Strategy Process, 22, 93 - 116. doi:10.1016/S0742-3322(05)22004-1.
VILÀ, J. (2001). Positioning strategies and prospects for success of emerging high-technology firms: The case of U.S. biotechnology. International Journal of Biotechnology, 3 (1/2), 57 - 81. doi:10.1504/IJBT.2001.000152.
ARIÑO, A., VILÀ, J., ABRAMOV, M., ET AL. (1997). Partner selection and trust building in West European-Russian joint ventures: A Western perspective. International Studies of Management and Organization, 27 (1), 19 - 37.

Working Papers

CANALES, J. I., VILÀ, J. (2004). Strategy formation effects on managerial action: Strategy in the back of your head (DI-573-E).
CANALES, J. I., VILÀ, J. (2004). Strategy-making via participation (DI-569-E).
MASIFERN, E., VILÀ, J. (2002). Strategic thinking: Strategy as a shared framework in the mind of managers (DI-461-E).
VILÀ, J., CANALES, J. I. (2001). Sequence of thinking and acting in strategy making (DI-436-E).
VILÀ, J. (1991). Positioning strategies and prospects for success in emerging high-technology firms: The case of U.S. Biotechnology (DI-221-E).

Articles in other publications

VILÀ, J., CAMPS, X. (2018). From Identifying Needs to Generating Opportunities. Discovery Before Solutions. IESE Insight (37), pp. 15 - 22.
VILÀ, J., CAMPS, X. (2018). De la identificación de necesidades a la generación de oportunidades. Descubrir antes de solventar. IESE Insight (37), pp. 15 - 22.
VILÀ, J. (2012). Normalice la innovación y transformará su empresa. Una hoja de ruta propia. IESE Insight (14), pp. 36 - 43.
VILÀ, J. (2012). Normalize Innovation to Transform Your Firm. A Customized Road Map. IESE Insight (14), pp. 36 - 43.
VILÀ, J. (2008). Setting Out Innovation Guidelines in Business: Road Map Towards a Fully Innovating Culture. Paradigmes: Strategies for Innovation (0), pp. 66 - 78.

Book Chapters

VILÀ, J. (2008). RACC's turning point. In Gerry Johnson, Kevan Scholes, Richard Whittington (Eds.), Exploring corporate strategy (pp. 846 - 849). Harlow, England: Prentice Hall.
VILÀ, J. (2004). Leadership and innovation. In Subir Chowdhury (Ed.), Next generation business handbook: New strategies from tomorrow's thought leaders (pp. 39 - 55). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.
CANALES, J. I., VILÀ, J. (2004). Strategy formation effects on managerial action: Strategy in the back of your mind. In Steven W. Floyd, Johan Roos, Claus D. Jacobs, Franz W. Kellermanns (Eds.), Innovating strategy process (pp. 33 - 46). Chichester, UK: Blackwell.
VILÀ, J., SYVERTSEN, C. (2000). Towards the business federation: Organizational arrangements in management consulting firms in Norway and Spain. In R. Sánchez, A. Heene (Eds.), Implementing competence-based strategies (pp. 215 - 242). Amsterdam: Jai Press.
MASIFERN, E., VILÀ, J. (1998). Interconnected mindsets: Strategic thinking and the strategy concept. In Michael A. Hitt, Joan E. Ricart I Costa, Robert D. Nixon (Eds.), New managerial mindsets: Organization transformation and strategy implementation (pp. 15 - 34). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.

Studies

RIBERA, J., MUR J. (2014). Avanzando en gestión clínica. Reflexiones de gestores y clínicos.

Cases

VILÀ, J., DOVAL, H. (2017). Creatively Solving Complex Problems at Great United Bank. IESE, SM-1651-E.
NTOI, H., THOMAS, L., VILÀ, J. (2016). The Managerial Dilemma of E-Toll Route Implementation in South Africa. IESE, SM-1643-E.
VILÀ, J., OLLÉ, M., FERNÁNDEZ, J. A. (2012). Prefabricados Planas 2007: Building the Desired Future. IESE, SM-1580-E.
VILÀ, J., OLLÉ, M., FERNÁNDEZ, J. A. (2012). Prefabricados Planas 2007: construyendo un futuro deseado. IESE, SM-1580.
MITCHELL, J., VILÀ, J. (2006). Sony in 2006. IESE, DG-1495-E.

Technical Notes

VILÀ, J. (2011). Innovative Culture: Values, Principles and Practices of Senior Executives in Highly Innovative Companies. IESE, SMN-681-E.
VILÀ, J. (2011). Cultura innovadora: valores, principios y prácticas de primeros ejecutivos en empresas altamente innovadoras. IESE, SMN-681.
MUÑOZ-NAJAR J. A.,, VILÀ, J. (2003). Guía de autoevaluación de las capacidades para innovar. IESE, DGN-629.
MUÑOZ-NAJAR J. A.,, VILÀ, J. (2002). Reglas para el diseño de un plan que permita a la empresa el desarrollo de la capacidad para innovar. IESE, DGN-630.
MUÑOZ-NAJAR J. A.,, VILÀ, J. (2002). Conocimiento y pensamiento creativo para la innovación. IESE, DGN-632.